1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a surge suppression system and more particularly to the employment of such a system in a base structure for a conventional electric meter.
A wide variety of electrically powered appliances and equipment are in present use today in both the home, office, factory, etc. These appliances and equipment are oftentimes quite expensive, being used to perform and support the performance of vital activities. Examples of such appliances and equipment include personal computers and larger business or scientific computers, medical systems, monitors and instruments used in providing health care, various home appliances, televisions and other video display systems, etc. In fact, society has come to depend on the proper and accurate functioning of such appliances and equipment to the extent that any interruption of the use thereof can be at best only inconvenient and to some extent costly, and at worst life threatening. For this reason, there is a continuing interest in developing devices for protecting against disruption of and damage to such appliances and equipment.
Examples of the type of occurrences which could disrupt the operation of an electrical system and cause damage thereto include electrical noise, voltage sags and surges, and transients. Each of these types of "disturbances" is well known in the electrical system protection field and are discussed in detail in U.S. Pat. No. 4,630,163.
Although the types of electrical disturbances mentioned above are generally of greatest concern for users of electrical systems such as computers, medical equipment, communication equipment, etc., there is still a desire and need for protecting against such electrical disturbances from reaching electrical distribution systems of homes, business offices, and like facilities. It would be desirable, for example, if such electrical distribution systems could be easily and simply adapted to protect against electrical disturbances reaching any appliances or equipment which might be connected to the distribution systems, and thereby obviate the need for providing protection devices for each individual piece of equipment connected to the distribution system.